Spoils of War:The Scheme
tf - Thursday, March 27, 2014, 7:01 PM -------------------------------------- About a year ago, the discovery of the Drone Mainframe was the hot topic of Cybertron. Elita One and Shockwave battled for the area in a widespread Cybertron-wide gambit that maybe if the Autobots got control of the area, that the logistical nightmare that would follow would cripple the Decepticon forces long enough to take land. It worked in part. The Autobots did claim control of the area in a maneuver known as the Queen's Gambit, and accessed a great deal of Con Intelligence, as well as general havoc. This was why Soundwave was recalled from his other operations, to put the house back in order. So he has. Soundwave stands in the wide center of the mainframe, having been doing some work on one of the large globes of networking operations. He had requested the less triggerhappy Cons to show, the ones who were skilled and capable, and made a specific note of Onslaught and whichever Combaticons he could muster. The area is dark, dank and eerie. Cassettecons loom in the shadows, always watching those that enter. Spies in the shadows, even here. With his back to the entrants, Soundwave finishes welding open a panel, revealing several wires... "Absolutely Unsurprising." Onslaught's words are quite vocal as he makes his way into the area with all of his scanners and guards up that he can pinpoint at this exact moment. After all, he's meeting with Soundwave and that's never a good sign. He's got a few back up scanners running, in case Soundwave is scanning him for scanners and other tomfoolery, but who really knows if he'll be able to outsmart the master of tech. Probably not. But there's no harm in trying. There's probably a mutual distrust between them all anyway. Comes with being a Decepticon. Onslaught doesn't particularly seem too keen on spending a lot of time here, as he's got his piles and piles of other plans that he needs to get back to. But when the higher ups call, the Onslaught makes an appearance. Even if there are plans for it to be quite brief. Combat: Soundwave compares his Technical to Onslaught's Technical: Success! Combat: Onslaught is size 7, slightly larger than you. Onslaught doesn't notice any scanning, it seems. The Tape Commander rumbles, "ONSLAUGHT." He turns to face you, actually having to look up a hair towards the Combaticon Commander. "THIS AREA HAS RECENTLY COME BACK INTO OUR CONTROL. YOU KNOW ITS WORTH." The way he says it isn't even a question, "AS I AM IN CHARGE OF OPERATIONS ON CYBERTRON CURRENTLY, WHEN SCORPONOK IS NOT OUT WASTING EVERYONE'S TIME AND RESOURCES...I HAVE DECIDED TO PUT IN ACTION A FEW LONG-STANDING PLANS...." He looks back to the Mainframe itself, "PLANS THAT INVOLVE YOU PERSONALLY." He steps away from you, towards a monitor, "THE DECEPTICONS HAVE MANY STRENGTHS, AND DESPITE OUR EFFORTS, SEVERAL WEAKNESSES." Several pictures flash by, Misfire, Backfire, Whirl, Triggerhappy, Whirl again even though he's an Autobot, and the other idiots in the faction. Soundwave takes a few moments to answer, no doubt calcuating as much as you what the next words may reveal. "I AM TASKING YOU WITH AN ASSAULT, A RENEWAL IN GROUND WARFARE. WE ARE STOCKED...FAIRLY FOR OUR MUNITIONS AND ENERGON THANKS TO RAZORCLAW. I HAVE DECIDED IT IS TIME TO GIVE TO YOU SOMETHING YOU HAVE LONG REQUESTED." Razorclaw has arrived. "I exist to serve." How Onslaught manages to turn down the sarcasm on that statement is beyond comprehension. But he actually does. Well, there's still a hint of it there but he doesn't even know if Soundwave is capable of picking up on tone inflections such as that so he simply crosses his arms and tilts his head in a slightly impatient manner. This is likely going to be another waste of time but he's willing to listen to it anyway. "I have, over the eons, made quite a few requests. You'll need to be more specific." Onslaught refuses to let himself get even slightly attached to any of the ideas that he has submitted until the confirmation from Soundwave becomes vocal and possibly even recorded. He'll likely need some sort of audio confirmation of this meeting later on anyway "I am glad to know you are putting our recent aquisitions to good use, Soundwave." Razorclaw's voice seems to come from nowhere briefly, but it's just that the Predacon commander was heard before actually stepping into view. But timely enough to hear the end of the tape commander's statements. "I apologize for my lateness." Pauses to brush off one shoulder. "Some recalibrations after the previous operation took longer than I was informed they would." Americon has arrived. The Tape Commander levels a hard gaze at Onslaught that lasts for several moments. "DO YOU?" That moment hangs in the air for an age before he continues, "CONSIDERING WHAT YOU WILL BE GIVEN, A CHANCE TO FINALLY SHOW YOUR 'VAUNTED' TACTICAL PROWESS, I WILL ASSUME SO." Soundwave motions to a spot near the mainframe sphere. "YOU GENERALLY CLAIM YOUR TROOPS ARE NOT UP TO THE TASK WHEN YOU ARE DEALT A DEFEAT. THAT TROOPS WHO WORKED IN PROPER TANDEM AND EFFICIENCY WOULD HAVE GARNERED YOU A VICTORY." He pauses, as Razorclaw makes his grand entrance. Of course Soundwave knew he was there. Garboil, Laserbeak and Ravage were on sight, though Ravage had deigned ratting him out due to professional courtesy. "RAZORCLAW." Soundwave announces for acknowledgment's sake, "I INTEND FOR YOU TO BE AS INVOLVED AS ONSLAUGHT IN THE WAR EFFORT. YOUR RAID ON THE EARTH'S HYDROELECTRIC DAM HAS SHOWN AGAIN YOUR TALENTS FOR ASSESSMENT AND CAPTURE. THE PLANS TO BE INVOLVED WILL REQUIRE MORE, MUCH MORE. IF THIS GOES AS PLANNED, THERE IS A HIGH PERCENTAGE CHANCE WE WILL DRIVE THE AUTOBOTS OFF OF CYBERTRON, BUT TO DO THAT WE NEED SUPPLIES." Without any preamble, Soundwave adds, "ONSLAUGHT, OPEN UP YOUR PROCESSOR FRAME, THERE IS WORK TO BE DONE." Americon suddenly appears from behind Soundwave's leg, pointing at Onslaught and yelling, "YEAH!" That was his contribution to the meeting so far. Hopefully everyone liked it. Razorclaw merely nods a bit at Soundwave's response. "Of course." Now just what was he planning to do to Onslaught? Although curious, he remains at a safe distance to merely watch as the conversation continues. "But aquiring supplies is only one aspect of the matter." Razorclaw tilts his head back a bit, as if staring off at something in space. Or some one. "There is also the matter of making sure they are not... squandered on frivilous expendatures." Soundwave taps the button on his shoulder, "RUMBLE, EJECT." Rumble has arrived. Rumble flips out of Soundwave's cassette case, transforms, and looks around. Soundwave repeats the process, again tapping the button on his shoulder, "FRENZY, EJECT." Frenzy has arrived. Sorry, your building quota has run out. Onslaught doesn't move a muscle. It's not that he doesn't trust Soundwave. No no, it's more that Soundwave is Soundwave. So it takes him quite a bit of time before he raises a hand to show just how much he's not willing to open up any part of his hull around the likes of Soundwave without proper cause or validation. "I humbly beg your pardon, Soundwave." Onslaught lowers his head to feign submission. "But I believe you have neglected, not of your own accord of course, to explain exactly what you are referring to." Onslaught brings his gaze back up to look at Soundwave. "You were, as I recall, interrupted by the arrival of Razorclaw." Snitch! You drop backstory. Americon stands next to Rumble and Frenzy now that there's three of them. Of course, whatever may be wrong with Rumble and Frenzy, Americon can be argued to trump it. "YEAH, well, NOBODY interrupts Soundwave with the thing that he wanted to say but couldn't! That is very rude and un-American!" He nods his head, satisfied by his mindless brown-nosing. The Tape Commander lets the kids out to play, and while certainly Razorclaw did change things up, it was more for his own benefit, testing Onslaught's loyalty chip. It was going to be a risk. He looks aside to Razorclaw, then back to Onslaught. He had some experience with bad risks. Soundwave glances at Americon out of the corner of his visor.... "THEN LET ME EXPLAIN THE PLANS AT HAND. PART ONE IS AS FOLLOWS...WE ARE GOING TO ARM AND FIELD A DRONE ARMY. FROM THIS LOCATION, NOW THAT THE SECURITY BREECHES HAVE BEEN FILLED, THE DRONES AGAIN ARE UNDER OUR CONTROL FULLY. ALONE, THEY ARE...INADEQUATE AS A THREAT. TOGETHER, THEY ARE SLIGHTLY MORESO. HOWEVER, I HAVE DEVISED A WAY TO GIVE GREATER CONTROL OVER THEM." With a bit of dramatic flare, he looks away from the monitor back towards Onslaught, "YOUR CONTROL. AN ARMY FOLLOWING YOUR SPECIFIC INSTRUCTIONS, THE VERY MOMENT YOU GIVE THEM. SENSORY INPUT AND STATUS REPORTS FED DIRECTLY TO YOUR PROCESSOR...." He returns to the console, tapping buttons, displaying his schematics, "IT ISN'T A PLANETARY WIDE MOVE, AND LIKELY YOUR PROCESSOR COULD NOT KEEP UP WITH THAT, BUT IT WILL WORK IN SCALED BATTLES. TO DO THIS PROPERLY, WE WILL HAVE TO EXHAUST OUR RESERVE SUPPLIES AND ENERGON, TO FIELD THIS EXTRA ARMY. THERE IS A HIGH CHANCE OF TAKING MORE THAN ENOUGH GROUND TO OFFSET THE RISK..." His optics light up a bit at the words that come from Soundwave and Onslaught seems to be okay with what he's been told. After all, he can simply inspect the drones and such after they have been attached to his processor. Not to mention he has a couple more failsafe things built into his structure for occasions such as this one. Onslaught is always prepared and always prepped with a plan. "Very well." It is then that Onslaught disengages a panel on his body to allow for access. He will probably regret this but at least he'll get an army out of the deal. Frenzy lets Americon be the redneck of the tape bunch. Him and Rumble would blend seemlessly into a Joe Pesci film, accents and all. "Yeah yeah! You yapping on like dat Blaster buffon and his rapping ain't doin the boss no favours either." Soooo many buttons to press... Razorclaw doesn't visibly react to Onslaught's 'tattling', continuing to just watch with a cold, slightly impassive demeanor. Granted that was mostly due to the lack of expressive facial features thanks to being one of the many Cons with the mouthplate style going. But there was little secret that their difference in tactical styles did cause a bit of contention between Razorclaw and Onslaught. Just both knew it was better than to outright express it. Turning the drones into an actual combat force, even if only for specific operations. Explains why he got orders to increase aquisition operations before hand. "Just make sure certain members of his team don't try to sell those drones to a potential enemy," the Predacon deadpans, making it pretty clear who he is referencing even with the lack of a name said. Rumble grins at Razorclaw's comment, and he elbows Frenzy as if sharing a private joke. Frenzy looks shocked! "I ain't down for giving nothin' to dem Autobums." He pauses and looks up at Soundwave with a wicked grin. "Might have to take a drone for a test flight though." Americon, if he were smarter, would probably point out that Onslaught and Razorclaw should actually get along famously because they have a lot in common. Instead he just says, "I dunno if Onslaught can handle some DRONES! I bet that even I could order around a bunch of drones with better ordering!" Pause. "Wait, I dissed myself, dammit!" "IF SWINDLE IS ALLOWED TO SELL A SINGLE DRONE, AND I FIND OUT. THE OPERATION ENDS, AND YOUR CHANCE TO PROVE YOUR GENIUS ENDS." Case closed. Soundwave continues, hitting a large button that changes the schematics to...Rumble and Frenzy! "I WILL BE PERFORMING A SECONDARY OPERATION DURING THESE ASSAULTS TO LAUNCH A MISSION TO PLANET 2K-ISBAR. UPON CAPTURE OF THEIR RARE ELEMENTAL POWER SOURCES THERE, I INTEND TO RECREATE A MACHINE FROM THE EARLIER WAR." He silently powers through Americon's comment, then continues "THE USE OF SIZE MANIPULATION TECHNOLOGY AND EQUIPMENT FALTERS DUE TO THE INSTABILITY OF IT. 2K-ISBAR HAS MADE REVOLUTIONARY BREAKTHROUGHS IN STABILITY OF GIGANTIUM IN RECENT YEARS. WE WILL RAID THEM FOR THIS AND THEN...WHEN WE ASSAULT RETORIS." The screen changes to an overlook of Retoris, and it's great wall. "RUMBLE AND FRENZY, AT INCREASED HEIGHT AND POWER, WILL LEVEL THE WALL ITSELF, AS SIEGEBREAKERS. THIS PLAN WILL BE KNOWN AS OPERATION:KAMEK." Soundwave turns to the assembled team, "THIS COMES WITH RISK..." He steps over towards Onslaught, and begins his open-brain surgery preparations, "IF WE ARE NOT SUCCESSFUL ENOUGH, WE MAY BE PUSHED OFF-PLANET TO CHARR, AND LORD GALVATRON WILL EXECUTE THE LOT OF US. HOWEVER, IF THESE OBJECTIVES COME TOGETHER AND WE ENSURE WE ARE PROPERLY SUPPLIED, IACON ITSELF WILL TREMBLE BEFORE US." Somewhere, the tune "Cities of Dust" plays, in dramatic foreboding! Rumble listens attentively as Soundwave describes the mission for himself and Frenzy, and his expression changes from mild boredom, to amazement, to sheer joy. "Oh, we'll be a success! We are gonna be a TOTAL success!" he gushes excitedly. Ooo, Soundwave didn't explicitly say no to any drone piloting. Still, amazed at Americon and his ability of his speech processor to filter the fuzzy logic from his brain to his audio output. "Sweet! We get to bust some big time trouble! Hah. Let's invite Blaster so I can step on him like an earth bug." Frenzy stamps loudly, almost giggling before he watches Soundwave start to work. "Hey Daddy-o, ask Onslaught if he smells burnt toast." Americon yells, 'Yeah, and you better not screw this up--" He overhears the bit about Rumble and Frenzy growing to increased size or something!? "--wah? But..." Instantly, he goes from toady to crestfallen, gaining puppy dog optics. "...not... me?..." Cue sad piano. Soundwave begins plugging wires into Onslaught's processor with nary a care. Everyone here is desensitized to brain detail in one form or another. Still, Americon gives him pause.... Soundwave actually lets out a sigh in thought, "AMERICON, YOU LACK THE DESTRUCTIVE SCOPE OF RUMBLE AND FRENZY." Solder, Solder...wire plug. "YOU CAN....ASSAULT THAT AMERICAN MEMORIAL AND SIT IN THE CHAIR IF YOU WISH." Or something..... "Your mouth is big enough as it is Americon," Razorclaw deadpans. Then lifts a hand to tap a finger to his chin thoughtfully, the clinking sound a bit more audible than usual because of his clawed fingertips. Everything seems sound with Soundwave's plans, for the most part. "We will need to continue to keep some pressure on Earth as well. The more sides we force the Autobots pay attention to, the less apt they will be at responding quickly to threats on other distant planets. "AGREED, RAZORCLAW. ASIDE FROM HARVESTING EARTH FOR OUR NEEDS STILL, KEEPING ATTENTION FOCUSED THERE COULD BE USEFUL." He pauses, "I HAVE HAD SEVERAL PLANS FOR EARTH AS WELL, THAT I HAVE NEVER USED...." Blast Off has arrived. Rumble is beaming like he's just won the lottery. "This is the BEST. THING. EVER," he sighs. Diagrams of another machine pop up on the computer, "AN ICE-9 GENERATOR. ASSUMING ALL THE PARTS OF IT ARE MANUFACTURED AND ASSEMBLED PROPERLY, IT HAS THE POTENTIAL TO FREEZE THE ENTIRETY OF A WORLD'S OCEAN. ANYONE ATTEMPTING TO DISABLE IT WOULD HAVE TO DIG THROUGH THE ENTIRE OCEAN'S DEPTH TO GET TO THE GENERATOR. IT HAS POTENTIALLY WORLD CHANGING POWER IF LEFT UNCHECKED....HOWEVER EARTH IS STILL A PRIME INTEREST FOR LORD GALVATRON. IF WE WERE TO THREATEN THIS, WE COULD NOT GO THROUGH WITH IT FULLY, YET IT'D MAKE A WORTHWHILE DISTRACTION." "Yeah, send red white and blue dream boy here to somewhere patriotic. Like a dinky donuts. Dose' earthlings love them shops. Take out one of those and you'd have the police, military and government there in a flash. A great distraction!" After Soundwave explains why he and Rumble are chosen for destruction duty, Frenzy flips his arms out for those two massive piledrives. "Sides, you don't come equipped wit' a pair of these babies. Imagine them 5 stories tall, eh Rumble?!" "Oh, mech, we're gonna ruin a whole CITY...we'll be big enough to step on houses...piledrive buildings..." Rumble skips around, chattering in amazement. Razorclaw mmhmmms. "Even if it fails to be used fully, the sheer level of threat would be enough to keep both the Autobots and the EDC more than occupied." Americon's head sags, and he mopes, "Okaaaay." The Lincoln Memorial is going to have a very odd visitation. "Can we stay big when it's all over??" Rumble asks hopefully.